My son is going to Tanzania to climb Mt Kilimanjaro! But that’s not all…
My son is going to Tanzania to climb Mt Kilimanjaro with my mother! She is 72 years old !!!
Kilimanjaro: 19,340 feet
Ten day trek: nine days up and one down
What an adventure!
Yep, Mother Vacation climbs in the Rockies with some frequency, and my 17-year-old son joins her when he can. She’s remarkably fit for her age, so we won’t be surprised if she makes it to the top. (She is taking Diamox to help prevent altitude sickness.) My son is strong like moose, so no worries there.
This is an Explorers Club expedition, and the climb leader is Richard Weiss, the Explorers Club president! Doesn’t get much better than that. We’re hoping that they will be able to send email updates, but it’s doubtful and they sure can’t call.
The best part for my son is that he will miss 6 days of school. Woo hoo!
I dropped them at the airport this afternoon and they’ve been in the air for a couple of hours now. I’m just about done with the crying.
::: Oh come on, Mom. He’s 17 years old, and he’s traveled without you many times. :::
Yeah, but I wanted to go, too! Boohoo. Whine. Pout.
Anita, I’m sure strong-like-moose Junior Vacation will have the time of his life. And I know exactly what you mean - I wanna climb Kilimanjaro sometime too!!
And a big hip-hip-hooray for your mom! I love it when people a whole generation older than me are doing stuff like that, because it tells me that I can be doing the same sort of stuff then if I take care of myself.
Son and Nanna will land in about ten minutes. I can hardly keep my mind on work because I’m so thrilled for them. Every half hour or so I’ve been calculating what they might be seeing out the window. If the sun hasn’t set yet, then they just flew over Ngorongoro crater, famous for its scenery and game.
What an amazing experience they’ll have! I have to say, it made me smile a big ole grin when I heard your mother was going, too. Most of the people that I age that I interact with are either in a nursing home or are severely ill, so I especially love hearing about “elderly” (and 72 doesn’t really seem that old) individuals leading lives full of adventure.
Mother Vacation is the family fitness freak. She has been working out daily (and sometimes hourly) for months in preparation for this trek. She sure doesn’t think of herself as “elderly”, but she loves getting that senior discount!
There’s no question about her physical fitness, however, my son knows that it’s his job to keep an eye on his Nanna and remind her of their trek instructions since she’s been having “senior moments” more and more often.
This is certainly her biggest adventure, and tha’t saying a lot! She and her husband have been around the world, to Machu Picchu and the Galapagos, and Antarctica. We don’t know how she plans to top this!
I lived in Tanzania for 8 years. Tried to climb Kili too, but I got altitude sickness and wasn’t particularly fit anyway (lived my whole life until then at sea level one place or another, and Dar-es-salaam is too hot for exercise). Your son and your mom are really going to have a blast; it’s a very beautiful area, and apparently it just gets better as you get higher.
Congrats to them, and don’t worry, they’ll be fine!
Yay to AnitaGeo Mom and g’son for this trek! What a great trip. You NitaGeo peoples have a fine family, and the tales told when they come back will enrich it even more!
Today is their first full day in Tanzania. Their itinerary says:
“Full day hiking in Arusha National Park. This park is one of Tanzania’s best kept secrets, with beautiful landscapes ranging from lush woodlands and lakes to the dramatic black cliffs of Mount Meru.” And then their last night in a bed!
Tomorrow they begin at the Machame Gate for their first day of trekking which is supposed to be quite a muddy slog through “dense rainforest, under the tangled canopy of moss coated vines which are home to the black & white colobus monkey, blue monkey and a vibrant array of exotic birds”.
Mom Vacation hopes to find email access at the lodge to send word back. Keep your fingers crossed!
A co-worker who has a son the same age, commented that this trip will change his life. My eyes welled up as I considered the wide world he’ll be exposed to at this young age. Who knows, he might decide to join the Peace Corps, and/or develop an interest in adventure travel which will last his lifetime, or become interested in preserving the environment, or want to study medicine to help people in developing countries. Oh, dear…I’m getting all choked up here.
I want to thank everyone for their warm wishes and way-to-go comments. Next time, I’m going to go, too! Wanna come?
I get to use his computer AND don’t have to cook Moose-sized meals every day! Woo hoo!
Well, if I don’t get a message in the next hour or so, it means she couldn’t get access to email at the lodge. That’s OK, we’ll just have to guess how they’re progressing.
Will you adopt me? PLEEEEAAAASE? please please please please? I’m only 2 years older than your son, and I’m still convincing my mom to let me go on a legitimate study abroad program in a stable country (New Zealand).
Daowajan, what you really need is a grandmother who wants to take you to New Zealand and wants to foot the bill, too. Your mom would agree in a heartbeat.
But seriously, a study program in NZ would be a wonderful experience for you, and I’m sure your mom will come around soon.
No email, so I’ll just have to go by their itinerary:
Last night was spent camping at 9,850 ft. in the lower heath belt, and today their trek took them through the heath and moorland and just about now, they are setting up camp on Shira Ridge at 12,600 ft. Tomorrow they will hike “across the stark high desert of the Shira Ridge”, and camp Tuesday night in the Great Baranco Valley (12,750) “amidst the forest of giant groundsels, between sheer cliffs with brilliant hanging glaciers.”
This climb itinerary plans for a very conservative gain in altitude to avoid altitude sickness, and it won’t be until Thursday that the Moose and Mother Vacation climb higher than they have ever been before, camping at 15,000 ft. at the base of Lava Tower.
Daowajan, which university in New Zealand are you interested in? My brother spent a year at Canterbury. (My parents were delighted, BTW, because it gave them an excuse to go to New Zealand … perhaps you should try that angle with your mom?)
Mother Vacation (aka Mother Bluetooth), jimbobboy and I have climbed together to 14,2xx, but - Wow. Most of our mountain hikes started near 10,000 feet, leaving ~4000 vertical feet of climbing/descent. Even hiking the Grand Canyon (two years ago, also Mother’s idea) involved only (!) 5000 or so vertical feet of climbing. This Kili climb is such a challenge. When Jim and I begged off on this climb, I was fretting about Mother doing the trek without family along. I’m so happy that Kyle is with her. Come to think of it, I’m also happy that mother is with Kyle - keeps him out of trouble, too.
